Data for Progress

Next, voters were provided with context about access to asylum at the U.S. southern border, where, until last year, an individual who was seeking safety in the United States could apply for asylum by presenting themselves at the border with their claim. Voters were then asked whether they believe the government should allow people to seek asylum at the U.S. southern border. Three in 5 voters (60%) say the government should allow people to seek asylum at the U.S. southern border.

Throughout a year where households have faced heightened costs for groceries and utilities, voters are also feeling the economic pressure from home insurance, with climate-driven disasters driving up rates. As pocketbook concerns continue to dominate voters’ top issues heading into the midterms, voters are deliberating who bears responsibility for these rising costs, and who should share the burden that they’re currently shouldering.

Voters were then asked their views about the importance of several factors that the government could consider when building public housing.

In recent years, there has been extensive discussion of a social decline in the United States, including a U.S. surgeon general advisory in 2023 that declared American loneliness to be an “epidemic.” Various surveys have tracked America’s social decline over the past few decades. Tracking data from the American Time Use Survey shows that Americans are spending more time alone and less time with friends than they were two decades ago.

In recent weeks, Flock Safety’s national network of automated license plate readers has come under intense scrutiny, culminating in a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday to interrogate the company’s practices and handling of Americans’ location data. The hearing follows reports that police officers have misused camera data to track people — including, in one case, an ex-romantic partner — and that Flock collects license plate records into a national database, searchable with AI tools.

In an effort to build popular support for clean energy development and ensure workers and communities meaningfully benefited from federal investment, the Biden administration implemented a series of rules, incentives, and requirements on labor and community engagement. In 2023, the administration strengthened and expanded the Davis-Bacon Act regulations, which set prevailing wages for workers on federal construction projects.

Gas prices have climbed over the last several months as the war in Iran has restricted global supply. This week, the average gas price rose to $4.31 a gallon, while diesel prices reached record highs. In response, President Donald Trump has described the high prices as a “small price to pay” in order to meet his war aims, and predicted prices would not fall until after the midterm elections.

President Donald Trump's second term has been marked by a string of controversies over self-dealing and conflicts of interest — including his family's expanding cryptocurrency ventures, a Qatari luxury jet accepted for his personal use, a pardon for Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, and continued refusal to fully release the government's files on Jeffrey Epstein.

“Working class” is a nebulous term in American politics, a subjective label often defined by academics and pollsters as people without a college degree. Understanding voters with and without a college degree provides a useful binary for understanding American politics and the way education and social environments shape political views.

The U.S. has now entered the seventh month of its war with Iran, a conflict that has killed 18 Americans and more than 3,000 Iranians, while raising gas prices by more than $1 per gallon. Data for Progress polling has consistently found that voters think the U.S. is failing to accomplish its goals in Iran, and that their top priority regarding the conflict is ending it as soon as possible.